Alan Rudnick, pastor of First Baptist Church (Ballston Spa, NY), recently wrote about constructing a theology for announcements in worship. He suggests that announcements belong in worship if they “serve a greater purpose: to connect people into greater opportunities of Christ-like community life.” Additionally, Rudnick encourages people to reconsider announcements as being
- made in non-verbal forms,
- delivered by a solid communicator (ideally the same person every week),
- celebratory, recognizing significant achievements alongside traditional opportunities for future service, and
- opportunities for ministry engagement.
So What?
Most churches devote a portion of each service of worship to announcements. These are handled in many ways.
- What are some of the more helpful guidelines your congregation has in place for what is eligible to be announced, who makes the announcement, and how the announcements are delivered?
- Listen to the announcements next week. Do they fulfill the recommendations on Rudnick’s list above?
For more on church announcements, check out Church Announcements = Epic Fail.